No decision yet on Munster hurling final venue

No decision has been made on the venue for the 2018 Munster senior hurling final.

There was speculation Páirc Uí Chaoimh would be awarded the provincial hurling decider, but Munster Council chairman Jerry O’Sullivan has confirmed the call will not be made until the finalists are known.

Páirc Uí Chaoimh was to stage last year’s final between Cork and Clare but that game was played in Thurles after the Cork executive informed Munster officials that the redevelopment of their flagship venue wouldn’t be complete in time for the fixture.

“It depends on the pairing,” said Jerry O’Sullivan of the 2018 final venue.

“Counties have long-standing home and away arrangements and that will come into place for the final. If, for example, it is Cork and Tipperary, it would be a Cork venue. If it was Cork and Limerick, it would be a Limerick venue.”

The Munster SFC final will be played in Páirc Uí Chaoimh should Cork and Kerry again come through their respective semi-finals.

If the 2016 final pairing of Kerry and Tipperary is repeated then Semple Stadium would get the nod.

The Munster Council chairman is confident attendances will remain high throughout a provincial hurling championship that has seven more games than last year’s edition. The average attendance for last year’s Munster SHC was 31,998, a significant improvement on the 2016 figure of 25,217.

“Each county, bar Waterford, has two home games and you’d expect counties to attract large home crowds for those games. Also, €20 for a stand ticket is excellent value. The icing on the cake is that the same two counties will be competing in the minor game before the senior. That is a bonus in many ways.”

O’Sullivan believes the right decision was taken to hand over responsibility for ticket sales, to the forthcoming Munster SHC games, to tickets.ie, which includes their website and SuperValu and Centra Stores. “It is most convenient for everybody. We are trying to avoid a situation where people are turning up on the day to purchase tickets. This leads to delays.”